Let me begin by thanking everyone who supported my campaign for Superintendent of Schools. Conventional wisdom held that 51 votes would be enough to win the republican primary in Choctaw County. I got 58 votes. That’s 35% of my race, which was 4% and 8% higher than the 2nd and 3rd place finishers got in the democratic primary. Moreover, I heard time and time again that many voters concerned about our schools would have voted for me if I had run as a democrat, but they felt compelled to vote in several hotly contested democratic races. While I’m not foolish enough to believe there would have been enough democratic votes for me to have won as a democrat, I do feel I did pretty well for an "outsider."
What pleases me most is that more than 40 people voted for my ideas and positions. I doubt they voted for me because I’m an opinionated ex-yankee. Moreover, I asked my church members not to vote for me so that they could support candidates from my congregation who were running as democrats. Other than my congregation, I haven’t got much family in Choctaw County. Given those who said they’d have voted for me as a democrat, and the votes I did get, I believe there are a good many people in Choctaw County who want to see the kinds of changes I’ve been advocating. Changes such as recruiting widely for teachers and administrators, using stakeholder input to insure the best applicants are hired, putting an end to hiring less qualified people just because they know somebody, improving classroom instruction, empowering teachers and treating them as professionals, giving parents a bigger say in their kids education, etc.
If you’re one of those people who would have voted for me if I ran as a democrat, I would encourage you to vote for Donna Nail in the democratic runoff election. She has most consistently supported these views. I worked closely with Donna last year and I believe she will do her best to bring about these kinds of improvements. In addition, she is one of the most professional, dedicated educators I have ever worked with. Moreover, everyone else in the election is running on experience. I believe that experience as part of a failed system will just perpetuate our problems, not solve them..
In closing, let me say that I have been encouraged by the number of people who want to fix our schools. Let me assure you I will not give up the fight. For starters, I intend to keep this blog going in a revised form. I’m trying to find a blog site that will allow the public to add their own articles to keep the conversation going. I will edit my campaign articles to remove any partisan politics and repost my suggestions on the new site. I’ll also be changing the blog address to reflect that it will no longer be mine, but will belong to the people of Choctaw County who are committed to improving our schools.
Until next time, may God bless you and your children.
Bob Mamrak
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Teacher Empowerment
Note: This is an ad that ran on August 1st
ATTENTION TEACHERS
As we enter the last week of this campaign I would like to ask every teacher in Choctaw County to reflect upon the issues facing our schools and each candidate’s specific plan to address those issues before you decide who to vote for. Once you get in that booth it’s between you and your conscience. I know you care about our schools. I hope you care enough to find out what each candidate’s position is. You may find that most candidates don’t really have a position on anything of substance. One candidate’s primary position seems to be that he’ll “dress appropriately.” Another’s is that he “loves the children.” I can promise you that I also love our children. As far as dressing appropriately, I’ll continue wear whatever my wife lays out for me. Beyond that, however, I’ve also stated specifically, and in great detail what I see as the problems facing our schools and what I’d do to fix them. It’s all available for your consideration at http://bobmamrak.blogspot.com. Now, I’d like to address two more things.
TEACHER EMPOWERMENT
In my 20 years as a Choctaw County classroom teacher my morale experienced many high and low points. Most highs took place when everyone got out of my way and let me design and deliver quality, creative lessons that my kids enjoyed and learned from. The lows invariably came when an administrator treated me like a hired hand, ordering me to do this, that, or the other thing when my experience and training told me it was a waste of time (or worse yet, bad instructional practice). In the past few years our morale has often been challenged when we see inexperienced, less qualified personnel promoted because they were somebody’s friend or relative.
I promise you, as superintendent, I will put a stop to this nonsense. I pledge to empower teachers to be directly involved in hiring, curriculum, and instructional decisions. Furthermore, I will see to it that teachers no longer have to work the gate, ticket booths, etc. at extracurricular activities unless they volunteer and are paid for their time. Other districts have long since stopped this practice in order to treat their teachers as professionals and not hired hands. You may be unaware that the ticket sale money made at athletic (often thousands of dollars) and other events are part of the activity fund that an administrator can spend at his discretion. Districts that respect their teachers as professionals pay teachers or parents who have volunteered out of those gate receipts.
OPEN, TRANSPARENT DECISION MAKING
I also pledge to you that as superintendent I will keep nothing secret from teachers or parents. The week of March 12th through the 18th was National Sunshine Week in America. Sunshine Week’s name comes from the “sunshine laws” each state in our nation has enacted to insure that local and state government bodies keep their meetings and records open to the public. To kick the week off the Clarion Ledger ran a series of editorials, one of which said, “If you're a parent, you need to know the decisions and policies of school boards that affect your children's education. Concerned parents too often, however, are shut out of the decision-making process in Mississippi.”
Ironically, the same week the Choctaw Chronicle ran this headline on the front page: “School board meets behind locked doors.” The article stated that, “The board met for three hours in the county office while citizens tried to enter the meeting. The citizens were told that there was no meeting in progress. So the question remains why were the doors locked while a public meeting was being conducted?” Why indeed. While it is true that public bodies may go into “executive session” to discuss certain issues defined by Mississippi’s Open Meeting Act, the law enumerates specific procedures that must be followed before going into “executive sessions.” My concern is not just that the law seems to have been ignored in regard to the meeting in question, but as the Clarion Ledger pointed out, parents “need to know the decisions and policies of school boards that affect your children's education.”
Secrecy in our school district is not confined to meetings. This January our district received a report from the JBHM Education Group entitled, Organization and Performance Evaluation of Choctaw County Schools. This 51-page document reportedly cost taxpayers around $25,000. I’ve been told by parents who have requested a copy that none were available for them. What’s even more disturbing is that when copies of the report were distributed to school administrators seven pages had already been removed. According to the report’s Table of Contents those pages contain evaluations for each of our schools’ principals. Surely parents have a right to know what kind of job those entrusted with their children’s futures are doing. According to Mississippi’s Public Records Act taxpayers have a right to see that report. I don’t know about you, but if I can’t see the whole report I’d like my share of the $25,000 back.
As superintendent I will never conceal information or a decision making process that pertains to the running of our schools. If you are supporting other candidates, ask them if they are willing to pledge the same. If they’re not, I hope you’ll have the good sense to look for another candidate. It is time for the public to take back our public schools. Progress requires change. Vote for Bob Mamrak.
ATTENTION TEACHERS
As we enter the last week of this campaign I would like to ask every teacher in Choctaw County to reflect upon the issues facing our schools and each candidate’s specific plan to address those issues before you decide who to vote for. Once you get in that booth it’s between you and your conscience. I know you care about our schools. I hope you care enough to find out what each candidate’s position is. You may find that most candidates don’t really have a position on anything of substance. One candidate’s primary position seems to be that he’ll “dress appropriately.” Another’s is that he “loves the children.” I can promise you that I also love our children. As far as dressing appropriately, I’ll continue wear whatever my wife lays out for me. Beyond that, however, I’ve also stated specifically, and in great detail what I see as the problems facing our schools and what I’d do to fix them. It’s all available for your consideration at http://bobmamrak.blogspot.com. Now, I’d like to address two more things.
TEACHER EMPOWERMENT
In my 20 years as a Choctaw County classroom teacher my morale experienced many high and low points. Most highs took place when everyone got out of my way and let me design and deliver quality, creative lessons that my kids enjoyed and learned from. The lows invariably came when an administrator treated me like a hired hand, ordering me to do this, that, or the other thing when my experience and training told me it was a waste of time (or worse yet, bad instructional practice). In the past few years our morale has often been challenged when we see inexperienced, less qualified personnel promoted because they were somebody’s friend or relative.
I promise you, as superintendent, I will put a stop to this nonsense. I pledge to empower teachers to be directly involved in hiring, curriculum, and instructional decisions. Furthermore, I will see to it that teachers no longer have to work the gate, ticket booths, etc. at extracurricular activities unless they volunteer and are paid for their time. Other districts have long since stopped this practice in order to treat their teachers as professionals and not hired hands. You may be unaware that the ticket sale money made at athletic (often thousands of dollars) and other events are part of the activity fund that an administrator can spend at his discretion. Districts that respect their teachers as professionals pay teachers or parents who have volunteered out of those gate receipts.
OPEN, TRANSPARENT DECISION MAKING
I also pledge to you that as superintendent I will keep nothing secret from teachers or parents. The week of March 12th through the 18th was National Sunshine Week in America. Sunshine Week’s name comes from the “sunshine laws” each state in our nation has enacted to insure that local and state government bodies keep their meetings and records open to the public. To kick the week off the Clarion Ledger ran a series of editorials, one of which said, “If you're a parent, you need to know the decisions and policies of school boards that affect your children's education. Concerned parents too often, however, are shut out of the decision-making process in Mississippi.”
Ironically, the same week the Choctaw Chronicle ran this headline on the front page: “School board meets behind locked doors.” The article stated that, “The board met for three hours in the county office while citizens tried to enter the meeting. The citizens were told that there was no meeting in progress. So the question remains why were the doors locked while a public meeting was being conducted?” Why indeed. While it is true that public bodies may go into “executive session” to discuss certain issues defined by Mississippi’s Open Meeting Act, the law enumerates specific procedures that must be followed before going into “executive sessions.” My concern is not just that the law seems to have been ignored in regard to the meeting in question, but as the Clarion Ledger pointed out, parents “need to know the decisions and policies of school boards that affect your children's education.”
Secrecy in our school district is not confined to meetings. This January our district received a report from the JBHM Education Group entitled, Organization and Performance Evaluation of Choctaw County Schools. This 51-page document reportedly cost taxpayers around $25,000. I’ve been told by parents who have requested a copy that none were available for them. What’s even more disturbing is that when copies of the report were distributed to school administrators seven pages had already been removed. According to the report’s Table of Contents those pages contain evaluations for each of our schools’ principals. Surely parents have a right to know what kind of job those entrusted with their children’s futures are doing. According to Mississippi’s Public Records Act taxpayers have a right to see that report. I don’t know about you, but if I can’t see the whole report I’d like my share of the $25,000 back.
As superintendent I will never conceal information or a decision making process that pertains to the running of our schools. If you are supporting other candidates, ask them if they are willing to pledge the same. If they’re not, I hope you’ll have the good sense to look for another candidate. It is time for the public to take back our public schools. Progress requires change. Vote for Bob Mamrak.
Saturday, August 4, 2007
It's Time for Solutions
Note: This is another ad than ran on August 1st
As we enter the last week before the election we hope that all voters are aware of the serious nature of the superintendent’s election before us. Our county schools operate on an annual budget of around 16 million dollars per year. That’s a lot of tax dollars that have come out of our pockets. That’s a lot of meat and potatos that will never make it onto our families plates. I hope you’ll all be concerned you’re getting your money’s worth.
Condider that ast year Choctaw County’s schools ranked somewhere in the middle of Mississippi’s schools. Mississippi’s schools rank #48 of America’s schools. America’s schools rank pretty low down the ladder of the industrial nations of the world’s schools. Looking at those facts, we have to believe we can do a lot better by our kids.
The first step is to get all of us, the parents and grandparents of our kids to care enough about our schools to cast informed votes in the superintendent’s election. Find out what each candidate says he or she will do as superintendent. If a candidate has no specific ideas to improve our schools, there’s very little chance he will improve them. If a candidate is running on the great job he did as an administrator in our schools, why aren’t our schools in better shape than they are now?
Putting up the most yard signs and handing out the most cards are not part of the superintendent of school’s job description. Being able to identify problems in our schools and fix them is. Saying, “I love our kids, the children are the future, and our kids deserve the best,” is not enough. Every candidate feels this way, but those positive feelings aren’t enough to fix our schools. Every voter owes it to the children of Choctaw County to elect the superintendent who has the courage to identify the problems in our schools and the knowledge to fix them.
Please take the time to find out what the candidates’ ideas are for fixing our schools. You may find out your favorite hasn’t got any idea. You can find out very specifically what Bob Mamrak plans to do at http://bobmamrak.blogspot .com. If you prefer, call him at 285-3633 and he’ll explain his ideas over the phone or send them to you in writing. We’re convinced that if you truly want a superintendent who0 can improve our schools you’ll vote for Bob Mamrak.
Paid for by the committee to elect Bob Mamrak.
As we enter the last week before the election we hope that all voters are aware of the serious nature of the superintendent’s election before us. Our county schools operate on an annual budget of around 16 million dollars per year. That’s a lot of tax dollars that have come out of our pockets. That’s a lot of meat and potatos that will never make it onto our families plates. I hope you’ll all be concerned you’re getting your money’s worth.
Condider that ast year Choctaw County’s schools ranked somewhere in the middle of Mississippi’s schools. Mississippi’s schools rank #48 of America’s schools. America’s schools rank pretty low down the ladder of the industrial nations of the world’s schools. Looking at those facts, we have to believe we can do a lot better by our kids.
The first step is to get all of us, the parents and grandparents of our kids to care enough about our schools to cast informed votes in the superintendent’s election. Find out what each candidate says he or she will do as superintendent. If a candidate has no specific ideas to improve our schools, there’s very little chance he will improve them. If a candidate is running on the great job he did as an administrator in our schools, why aren’t our schools in better shape than they are now?
Putting up the most yard signs and handing out the most cards are not part of the superintendent of school’s job description. Being able to identify problems in our schools and fix them is. Saying, “I love our kids, the children are the future, and our kids deserve the best,” is not enough. Every candidate feels this way, but those positive feelings aren’t enough to fix our schools. Every voter owes it to the children of Choctaw County to elect the superintendent who has the courage to identify the problems in our schools and the knowledge to fix them.
Please take the time to find out what the candidates’ ideas are for fixing our schools. You may find out your favorite hasn’t got any idea. You can find out very specifically what Bob Mamrak plans to do at http://bobmamrak.blogspot .com. If you prefer, call him at 285-3633 and he’ll explain his ideas over the phone or send them to you in writing. We’re convinced that if you truly want a superintendent who0 can improve our schools you’ll vote for Bob Mamrak.
Paid for by the committee to elect Bob Mamrak.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Summing Up a Bit
Note: This week was my turn to be profiled in a free candicacy announcement in the Plaindealer. Since it was my first chance to do this in that publication, it seemed wise to sum up the campaign so far. The article that ran in the Plaindealer on July 24th appears below.
Bob Mamrak has announced his candidacy for the office of Superintendent of Schools. He will be running in the Republican primary on August 7th. Mamrak has been an educator in the Choctaw County school system for 20 years. He is also in his 20th year pastoring New Zion Baptist Church. He calls those 20 years one of his most pleasing accomplishments since the longest any one man ever served the 165 year-old church was seven years. Mamrak has been married to his wife Anna for 36 years. They have two grown children and one grandchild.
Mamrak’s academic qualifications are impressive. He has a bachelor’s degree in communications with a minor in public relations. He has a master’s degree in educational leadership. He has finished the coursework for a doctorate in educational leadership and is completing his PhD dissertation on Mississippi school reform. Mamrak is a nationally certified English teacher, and is certified by the state of Mississippi in English, art, journalism, and administration. He has successfully competed for national grants that he used to study the school systems in both Japan and Germany.
Mamrak has said that his intent from the start has been to run a campaign that focused on the issues facing our schools. He feels that A serious discussion of the issues cannot take place in small advertisements, on yard signs, or on business cards. Therefore, he helped organize a public panel discussion where all the candidates for superintendent had the opportunity to explain their positions and answer the public’s questions. All but one candidate attended. In addition, Mamrak has posted all of his positions and proposals on the Internet (http://bobmamrak.blogspot.com) so voters can evaluate them carefully and thoughtfully.
Mamrak feels there are many problems facing our schools. “There’s a bunch of them,” he said, “but most stem from one over-riding problem: the public has lost control of our public schools. For too long our schools have been run like a private business. We say we want parental involvement when in reality we only want parental approval. We say we want to hire the best certified educators available when in reality we don’t recruit beyond our friends and families. We allow public educators, paid with our hard earned tax dollars, to make decisions behind closed doors and without our input: decisions that will determine our children’s futures. Maybe it’s acceptable to run a privately owned candy store this way, but not schools established to serve the public. It’s got to stop. It is time to take back our schools.”
Mamrak has listed eight changes he would make to begin the work of fixing our schools: 1. Begin aggressive and wide recruitment for certified personnel and then involve parents and teachers in the hiring process in order to put a stop to administrators hiring less qualified “insiders.” 2. Work with each school’s PTO to make them organizations that help parents help their kids succeed, rather than the fund-raising groups they have become. 3. Work with principals and teachers to improve test scores by instituting proven teaching methods like problem-based learning, curriculum integration, and other student-centered techniques. 4. Make the decision making process in the school system transparent, so that taxpayers can hold administrators responsible for the decisions that effect their children’s futures. 5. Utilize the expertise and experience of classroom teachers by empowering them to be involved in policy and program decisions. 6. Ensure the safety of our students by securing the school buildings on every campus. 7. Get directly involved in the evaluation of teachers and administrators in order to acknowledge excellence and formulate plans to help those who are ineffective improve. 8. Hire an unemployed Choctaw Countian at minimum wage to cut grass on our campuses so that administrators making over $50,000 a year can get off riding lawnmowers and get back to running our schools.
Joking about not running on good looks or personality Mamrak said, “If that were the case, I’d be lucky to get my wife and myself to vote for me. I’m hoping there are enough people in Choctaw County who care enough about our schools to vote for someone who recognizes our problems and knows how to fix them.”
Bob Mamrak has announced his candidacy for the office of Superintendent of Schools. He will be running in the Republican primary on August 7th. Mamrak has been an educator in the Choctaw County school system for 20 years. He is also in his 20th year pastoring New Zion Baptist Church. He calls those 20 years one of his most pleasing accomplishments since the longest any one man ever served the 165 year-old church was seven years. Mamrak has been married to his wife Anna for 36 years. They have two grown children and one grandchild.
Mamrak’s academic qualifications are impressive. He has a bachelor’s degree in communications with a minor in public relations. He has a master’s degree in educational leadership. He has finished the coursework for a doctorate in educational leadership and is completing his PhD dissertation on Mississippi school reform. Mamrak is a nationally certified English teacher, and is certified by the state of Mississippi in English, art, journalism, and administration. He has successfully competed for national grants that he used to study the school systems in both Japan and Germany.
Mamrak has said that his intent from the start has been to run a campaign that focused on the issues facing our schools. He feels that A serious discussion of the issues cannot take place in small advertisements, on yard signs, or on business cards. Therefore, he helped organize a public panel discussion where all the candidates for superintendent had the opportunity to explain their positions and answer the public’s questions. All but one candidate attended. In addition, Mamrak has posted all of his positions and proposals on the Internet (http://bobmamrak.blogspot.com) so voters can evaluate them carefully and thoughtfully.
Mamrak feels there are many problems facing our schools. “There’s a bunch of them,” he said, “but most stem from one over-riding problem: the public has lost control of our public schools. For too long our schools have been run like a private business. We say we want parental involvement when in reality we only want parental approval. We say we want to hire the best certified educators available when in reality we don’t recruit beyond our friends and families. We allow public educators, paid with our hard earned tax dollars, to make decisions behind closed doors and without our input: decisions that will determine our children’s futures. Maybe it’s acceptable to run a privately owned candy store this way, but not schools established to serve the public. It’s got to stop. It is time to take back our schools.”
Mamrak has listed eight changes he would make to begin the work of fixing our schools: 1. Begin aggressive and wide recruitment for certified personnel and then involve parents and teachers in the hiring process in order to put a stop to administrators hiring less qualified “insiders.” 2. Work with each school’s PTO to make them organizations that help parents help their kids succeed, rather than the fund-raising groups they have become. 3. Work with principals and teachers to improve test scores by instituting proven teaching methods like problem-based learning, curriculum integration, and other student-centered techniques. 4. Make the decision making process in the school system transparent, so that taxpayers can hold administrators responsible for the decisions that effect their children’s futures. 5. Utilize the expertise and experience of classroom teachers by empowering them to be involved in policy and program decisions. 6. Ensure the safety of our students by securing the school buildings on every campus. 7. Get directly involved in the evaluation of teachers and administrators in order to acknowledge excellence and formulate plans to help those who are ineffective improve. 8. Hire an unemployed Choctaw Countian at minimum wage to cut grass on our campuses so that administrators making over $50,000 a year can get off riding lawnmowers and get back to running our schools.
Joking about not running on good looks or personality Mamrak said, “If that were the case, I’d be lucky to get my wife and myself to vote for me. I’m hoping there are enough people in Choctaw County who care enough about our schools to vote for someone who recognizes our problems and knows how to fix them.”
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Improving Classroom Instruction
Last week’s article responded to feedback I’ve gotten from parents concerned about the high-stakes testing required by the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Generally speaking, I’m in favor of the intent of the tests: holding schools accountable for the quality of education they provide. As you can probably tell, however, I’m no fan of NCLB.
Research has already revealed several unintended negative results of high-stakes testing. Most obvious is that schools are focusing most of their efforts on improving test scores, or as teachers like to say, “teaching the test.” This causes a narrowing of curriculum. Schools tend to stop teaching the whole child. Subjects that are not tested are neglected. This fosters a two-class society. Children from more affluent families are exposed to the arts and other aesthetic aspects of American culture at home, but the children of less affluent parents, children who used to discover these things at school, are indeed “left behind.”
Perhaps the most distressing unintended result of NCLB is what researchers call “educational triage.” Until hurricane Katrina I’d never even heard the word triage. I learned it’s a medical term that doctors use in emergency rooms, on battlefields, etc. to see which patient should be given priority. Basically, doctors separate patients into three groups: those that are not in too bad shape and don’t need priority treatment, those that can be saved if given top priority, and those who are so far gone that treatment wouldn’t save them anyway.
Because of NCLB high-stakes testing our schools are beginning to triage students. Teachers are told to classify students into three groups: those whose grades are high enough that they don’t need any help in passing the tests, those whose grades are on the borderline and will likely pass the test if they are given top priority, and those whose grades are so bad that they have little chance of passing the test no matter what a teacher does. The logic is that by concentrating on the middle group, schools can get a higher percentage of students passing the test and improve the school’s state performance level rating. Educational triage may improve a school’s rating, but it strikes me at best as contrary to the purpose of public schools. At worst it is un-American and bordering on immoral. Our best students are not challenged to excel and our most needy students are “left behind.” Our goal should not be to raise test scores. Our goal should be to provide the best possible education we can to all of our children regardless of their God-given ability.
Another unintended result of NCLB high-stakes testing is the detrimental effect it has had on teacher morale. Good, resourceful, creative teachers resent being told to abandon what they know are good instructional techniques in order to “teach the test.” Researchers have found that more teachers are leaving the profession, fewer top college students are entering the profession, and many who are persevering in classrooms report higher levels of job dissatisfaction.
It doesn’t have to be that way. Schools around the world, across America, and right here in Mississippi are experiencing high levels of student achievement (evidenced by high test scores) without “teaching the test.” A few years ago I was lucky enough to win a Fullbright Fellowship to travel to Japan and study their school system first hand. Japanese schools are widely regarded among the world’s best. Their test scores go through the roof. Like most people, I suspected they were obsessed with test scores and made their students drill, drill, DRILL! I was wrong. Their philosophy is to teach the whole child. They concentrate on curriculum integration, problem-based learning, classroom projects, and other student-centered learning strategies.
These strategies work because they make learning relevant to students’ lives and (more importantly from the kids’ perspective) fun. Let me give some specific examples.
The year that I returned from Japan I used what I had learned to design a school-wide, curriculum-integrated project: a Medieval Fair. In August I presented the plan to my principal and got permission to hold the fair nine months later in May. I should note that I got my administrator’s permission, not support. There were no school funds allocated to buy materials, there was no directive to other teachers to participate, there was no anything except a verbal, “Sure, do whatever you want.” In fact, when the event which was scheduled nine months in advance took place, the principal failed to attend citing another commitment.
Over the next eight months I planned and worked. I talked up the project to other teachers and parents. I spent every penny of my own classroom money to buy resources other teachers could use. I got the PTO to kick in $100 for supplies. In the end about half the staff came onboard. The event was held on the playground. Mrs. Wright had math students build a display on Medieval mathematicians and their accomplishments. Mrs. Coleman had Weir and Ackerman students use puppets to stage Medieval morality plays. Mrs. Weeks had her music classes perform Medieval songs. There were re-enactments of the King Arthur legends, architectural displays of Gothic cathedrals, a display of Medieval illuminated manuscripts, performing court jesters, innumerable booths featuring medieval foods and more. One parent gave lessons in calligraphy. The fair was a tremendous educational success. In addition to local newspaper coverage we were featured on the Columbus television station’s evening news.
Elaborate events like this are not the only way to go. Problem-based learning is a technique that is very effective. As always the teacher begins by checking the state framework for the standards and objectives to be taught in that particular area of study. The teacher then thinks of a problem or project whose completion will require learning those standards and objectives. Student achievement is not measured solely with a typical multiple choice and true/false test at the end of a unit. Tests of this type tend to find out more of what a child didn’t learn than what he did learn. Instead, the project becomes the evaluation, providing a learning experience that takes place throughout the unit.
For example, in an English class we studied Shakespeare for nine weeks. I split the class up into five groups and had each pretend to be an entertainment promotions company. They were told that a touring company was coming to Choctaw County to put on a play. Each group had to pick a Shakespeare play and devise a plan for staging the play at a profit. They had to write and produce newspaper, television, and radio ads. They had to find suitable locations and dates. They had to design and produce playbills. They had to set ticket prices, estimate attendance, and predict profit margins. In short, they had to do real life activities in an educational setting. During this one unit we covered nearly every standard and objective in my state framework.
Good, experienced teachers (and new or struggling teachers with good instructional leaders helping them) can come up with problem-based instruction for almost any unit of study. When my kids studied the King Arthur legend, groups acted as advertising agencies hired to create a multi-leveled campaign to recruit knights for the Round Table. When we studied the Diary of Anne Frank student groups had to come up with a complete plan to successfully hide and sustain a family like the Frank’s somewhere in Choctaw County. At the end of one year of English literature I had student groups act as travel agencies that put together a “Literary Tour of England” that included sites relevant to all the authors we studied. They created maps showing the logic of their itinerary. They submitted detailed budgets covering food, lodging, transportation, and admission fees. Moreover, they used advanced thinking skills while researching and completing a complicated, relevant, real-life project.
I don’t mean to sound like I’m the only local teacher who uses these effective instructional strategies. For years Carol Wright, one of the finest teachers I’ve known, had her math classes build scale models of their bedrooms. At Ackerman Elementary students have used higher-level thinking skills to solve a mystery after investigating a “crime scene” that teachers set up. Over the years I have seen many good teachers go the extra mile to design lessons that are effective, student-centered, and fun.
My point is that this type of teaching should be the rule rather than the exception. Unfortunately, as school districts feel increasing pressure to improve test scores these strategies are being neglected in favor of worksheets and drills, drills, drills. No wonder kids don’t like school.
I am currently finishing my doctorate in Educational Leadership with a dissertation studying the Pierce Street School in Tupelo, Mississippi. The Pierce Street School focuses on curriculum integration, problem-based learning, and other student-centered classroom instruction. Pierce Street’s state performance level rating has been a level five every year since Mississippi adopted the rating system. I believe our kids are every bit as smart as Tupelo’s kids. If we will teach them using the best available instructional strategies their test scores will be as high as any in Mississippi.
If you’re supporting other candidates ask them what they will do to improve test scores. If they intend to keep on doing what we’re doing now, it’s time to look for another candidate.
Until next time, may God bless you and your children.
Bob Mamrak
Research has already revealed several unintended negative results of high-stakes testing. Most obvious is that schools are focusing most of their efforts on improving test scores, or as teachers like to say, “teaching the test.” This causes a narrowing of curriculum. Schools tend to stop teaching the whole child. Subjects that are not tested are neglected. This fosters a two-class society. Children from more affluent families are exposed to the arts and other aesthetic aspects of American culture at home, but the children of less affluent parents, children who used to discover these things at school, are indeed “left behind.”
Perhaps the most distressing unintended result of NCLB is what researchers call “educational triage.” Until hurricane Katrina I’d never even heard the word triage. I learned it’s a medical term that doctors use in emergency rooms, on battlefields, etc. to see which patient should be given priority. Basically, doctors separate patients into three groups: those that are not in too bad shape and don’t need priority treatment, those that can be saved if given top priority, and those who are so far gone that treatment wouldn’t save them anyway.
Because of NCLB high-stakes testing our schools are beginning to triage students. Teachers are told to classify students into three groups: those whose grades are high enough that they don’t need any help in passing the tests, those whose grades are on the borderline and will likely pass the test if they are given top priority, and those whose grades are so bad that they have little chance of passing the test no matter what a teacher does. The logic is that by concentrating on the middle group, schools can get a higher percentage of students passing the test and improve the school’s state performance level rating. Educational triage may improve a school’s rating, but it strikes me at best as contrary to the purpose of public schools. At worst it is un-American and bordering on immoral. Our best students are not challenged to excel and our most needy students are “left behind.” Our goal should not be to raise test scores. Our goal should be to provide the best possible education we can to all of our children regardless of their God-given ability.
Another unintended result of NCLB high-stakes testing is the detrimental effect it has had on teacher morale. Good, resourceful, creative teachers resent being told to abandon what they know are good instructional techniques in order to “teach the test.” Researchers have found that more teachers are leaving the profession, fewer top college students are entering the profession, and many who are persevering in classrooms report higher levels of job dissatisfaction.
It doesn’t have to be that way. Schools around the world, across America, and right here in Mississippi are experiencing high levels of student achievement (evidenced by high test scores) without “teaching the test.” A few years ago I was lucky enough to win a Fullbright Fellowship to travel to Japan and study their school system first hand. Japanese schools are widely regarded among the world’s best. Their test scores go through the roof. Like most people, I suspected they were obsessed with test scores and made their students drill, drill, DRILL! I was wrong. Their philosophy is to teach the whole child. They concentrate on curriculum integration, problem-based learning, classroom projects, and other student-centered learning strategies.
These strategies work because they make learning relevant to students’ lives and (more importantly from the kids’ perspective) fun. Let me give some specific examples.
The year that I returned from Japan I used what I had learned to design a school-wide, curriculum-integrated project: a Medieval Fair. In August I presented the plan to my principal and got permission to hold the fair nine months later in May. I should note that I got my administrator’s permission, not support. There were no school funds allocated to buy materials, there was no directive to other teachers to participate, there was no anything except a verbal, “Sure, do whatever you want.” In fact, when the event which was scheduled nine months in advance took place, the principal failed to attend citing another commitment.
Over the next eight months I planned and worked. I talked up the project to other teachers and parents. I spent every penny of my own classroom money to buy resources other teachers could use. I got the PTO to kick in $100 for supplies. In the end about half the staff came onboard. The event was held on the playground. Mrs. Wright had math students build a display on Medieval mathematicians and their accomplishments. Mrs. Coleman had Weir and Ackerman students use puppets to stage Medieval morality plays. Mrs. Weeks had her music classes perform Medieval songs. There were re-enactments of the King Arthur legends, architectural displays of Gothic cathedrals, a display of Medieval illuminated manuscripts, performing court jesters, innumerable booths featuring medieval foods and more. One parent gave lessons in calligraphy. The fair was a tremendous educational success. In addition to local newspaper coverage we were featured on the Columbus television station’s evening news.
Elaborate events like this are not the only way to go. Problem-based learning is a technique that is very effective. As always the teacher begins by checking the state framework for the standards and objectives to be taught in that particular area of study. The teacher then thinks of a problem or project whose completion will require learning those standards and objectives. Student achievement is not measured solely with a typical multiple choice and true/false test at the end of a unit. Tests of this type tend to find out more of what a child didn’t learn than what he did learn. Instead, the project becomes the evaluation, providing a learning experience that takes place throughout the unit.
For example, in an English class we studied Shakespeare for nine weeks. I split the class up into five groups and had each pretend to be an entertainment promotions company. They were told that a touring company was coming to Choctaw County to put on a play. Each group had to pick a Shakespeare play and devise a plan for staging the play at a profit. They had to write and produce newspaper, television, and radio ads. They had to find suitable locations and dates. They had to design and produce playbills. They had to set ticket prices, estimate attendance, and predict profit margins. In short, they had to do real life activities in an educational setting. During this one unit we covered nearly every standard and objective in my state framework.
Good, experienced teachers (and new or struggling teachers with good instructional leaders helping them) can come up with problem-based instruction for almost any unit of study. When my kids studied the King Arthur legend, groups acted as advertising agencies hired to create a multi-leveled campaign to recruit knights for the Round Table. When we studied the Diary of Anne Frank student groups had to come up with a complete plan to successfully hide and sustain a family like the Frank’s somewhere in Choctaw County. At the end of one year of English literature I had student groups act as travel agencies that put together a “Literary Tour of England” that included sites relevant to all the authors we studied. They created maps showing the logic of their itinerary. They submitted detailed budgets covering food, lodging, transportation, and admission fees. Moreover, they used advanced thinking skills while researching and completing a complicated, relevant, real-life project.
I don’t mean to sound like I’m the only local teacher who uses these effective instructional strategies. For years Carol Wright, one of the finest teachers I’ve known, had her math classes build scale models of their bedrooms. At Ackerman Elementary students have used higher-level thinking skills to solve a mystery after investigating a “crime scene” that teachers set up. Over the years I have seen many good teachers go the extra mile to design lessons that are effective, student-centered, and fun.
My point is that this type of teaching should be the rule rather than the exception. Unfortunately, as school districts feel increasing pressure to improve test scores these strategies are being neglected in favor of worksheets and drills, drills, drills. No wonder kids don’t like school.
I am currently finishing my doctorate in Educational Leadership with a dissertation studying the Pierce Street School in Tupelo, Mississippi. The Pierce Street School focuses on curriculum integration, problem-based learning, and other student-centered classroom instruction. Pierce Street’s state performance level rating has been a level five every year since Mississippi adopted the rating system. I believe our kids are every bit as smart as Tupelo’s kids. If we will teach them using the best available instructional strategies their test scores will be as high as any in Mississippi.
If you’re supporting other candidates ask them what they will do to improve test scores. If they intend to keep on doing what we’re doing now, it’s time to look for another candidate.
Until next time, may God bless you and your children.
Bob Mamrak
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
High-Stakes Testing
In last week’s article I asked for feedback and input on the educational issues that have, and as of yet have not, been addressed during this campaign. I appreciate all the feedback I’ve gotten and I continue to encourage you to let me know what other educational issues you are concerned about. Call, write, or email me for straight answers (my number and address are in the previous article). I firmly believe that the parents and taxpayers of Choctaw County need to know where each candidate stands. Simply saying, “ I love kids,” “we must put students first,” and “the children are our future” is not enough. We need to elect a superintendent that has the courage to identify problems in our schools and has the expertise to fix them.
The feedback I’ve gotten so far makes it clear that people are concerned about the high-stakes testing our kids are subjected to as part of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation that comes out of Washington. As I said in a previous article, the premise behind the testing is reasonable: since the federal government provides local school districts with federal tax dollars, the federal government tries to hold local schools accountable. Simply put, the feds require us to test our kids to prove we’re using all that money to provide the public with effective schools.
The problem is that our concern with test scores has come to define how we do school. We have become so obsessed with improving test scores that most of what we do revolves around that end. In effect, the test that was intended to measure how we are doing has become what we are doing. That’s crazy! Testing cannot improve student achievement anymore than weighing a hog more frequently will fatten him up better.
The National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) is America’s best means for evaluating education across the nation. The NAEP tests students from all over the country so we can get a national report card. Their data for 2002-2005 showed that reading scores for fourth graders were unchanged and actually went down markedly for eighth graders despite all these tests. Worse yet, the testing required by the NCLB legislation has led states to construct charades of window dressing to make unsuccessful schools look successful. The legislation allows states to set their own standard for success. A Rand Corporation study showed that there is a huge gap between state test scores and NAEP scores. In other words, states are making their tests easier so the scores will make it look like their schools are doing better than they really are.
For instance, the Rand study showed that our 50 states reported that fourth graders required to take subject area tests passed at a rate of 21% in the lowest state and 90% in the highest state. When you look at the NAEP’s unbiased national scores, however, the lowest state’s fourth graders passed at a 10% rate and the highest state’s kids passed at a 43% rate. The gap between state reported scores and NAEP scores was highest in Texas, Georgia, and Mississippi. Unfortunately, Mississippi’s gap was the largest at about 68%.
No Child Left Behind is here and we have to deal with it, but our strategy of making improved test scores the highest priority is misguided at best. That strategy misses the point. The goal is not to improve test scores. The goal is to improve education. When that occurs, test scores will go up. Instructional techniques that accompany high-stakes, one size fits all testing programs undermine rather than improve the quality of education.
So what do we do? We improve instruction. We use instructional strategies that have been proven to work elsewhere: instructional strategies that motivate children and make their studies relevant. We do what successful schools are already doing. We concentrate on curriculum integration, problem-based learning, classroom projects, and other student-centered learning strategies.
In next week’s article I will explain how to do that and give specific examples of these proven instructional strategies. Fixing our schools is not easy. It takes more than saying, “ I love kids,” “we must put students first,” and “the children are our future.” Fixing our schools requires taking specific action to improve instruction. If you’re supporting other candidates ask them exactly how they intend to fix our schools. If they can’t give you specific, workable answers, find another candidate.
Until next time, may God bless you and your children.
Bob Mamrak
The feedback I’ve gotten so far makes it clear that people are concerned about the high-stakes testing our kids are subjected to as part of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation that comes out of Washington. As I said in a previous article, the premise behind the testing is reasonable: since the federal government provides local school districts with federal tax dollars, the federal government tries to hold local schools accountable. Simply put, the feds require us to test our kids to prove we’re using all that money to provide the public with effective schools.
The problem is that our concern with test scores has come to define how we do school. We have become so obsessed with improving test scores that most of what we do revolves around that end. In effect, the test that was intended to measure how we are doing has become what we are doing. That’s crazy! Testing cannot improve student achievement anymore than weighing a hog more frequently will fatten him up better.
The National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) is America’s best means for evaluating education across the nation. The NAEP tests students from all over the country so we can get a national report card. Their data for 2002-2005 showed that reading scores for fourth graders were unchanged and actually went down markedly for eighth graders despite all these tests. Worse yet, the testing required by the NCLB legislation has led states to construct charades of window dressing to make unsuccessful schools look successful. The legislation allows states to set their own standard for success. A Rand Corporation study showed that there is a huge gap between state test scores and NAEP scores. In other words, states are making their tests easier so the scores will make it look like their schools are doing better than they really are.
For instance, the Rand study showed that our 50 states reported that fourth graders required to take subject area tests passed at a rate of 21% in the lowest state and 90% in the highest state. When you look at the NAEP’s unbiased national scores, however, the lowest state’s fourth graders passed at a 10% rate and the highest state’s kids passed at a 43% rate. The gap between state reported scores and NAEP scores was highest in Texas, Georgia, and Mississippi. Unfortunately, Mississippi’s gap was the largest at about 68%.
No Child Left Behind is here and we have to deal with it, but our strategy of making improved test scores the highest priority is misguided at best. That strategy misses the point. The goal is not to improve test scores. The goal is to improve education. When that occurs, test scores will go up. Instructional techniques that accompany high-stakes, one size fits all testing programs undermine rather than improve the quality of education.
So what do we do? We improve instruction. We use instructional strategies that have been proven to work elsewhere: instructional strategies that motivate children and make their studies relevant. We do what successful schools are already doing. We concentrate on curriculum integration, problem-based learning, classroom projects, and other student-centered learning strategies.
In next week’s article I will explain how to do that and give specific examples of these proven instructional strategies. Fixing our schools is not easy. It takes more than saying, “ I love kids,” “we must put students first,” and “the children are our future.” Fixing our schools requires taking specific action to improve instruction. If you’re supporting other candidates ask them exactly how they intend to fix our schools. If they can’t give you specific, workable answers, find another candidate.
Until next time, may God bless you and your children.
Bob Mamrak
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Fourth of July Lull
Happy Fourth of July! You may have noticed that I didn’t run any political advertisements in this week’s papers. My intention was to take this week off to recover from a whirlwind month. My wife Anna and I spent two weeks in London visiting more historic sites than we could count. We returned to teach Vacation Bible School during the third week, and we had a great summer revival at New Zion in week four. Today Anna and I are celebrating our 36th wedding anniversary and babysitting our grand daughter, and tomorrow the rest of the clan is coming over for a July 4th cookout.
I thought all that was excuse enough not to post anything this week, but then I got a phone call from a supporter who was disappointed that I hadn’t written a new article. Well, I wouldn’t want to let anyone down so here I am at the keyboard.
The Fourth of July is traditionally when many Choctaw Countians decide whom they will vote for in August. At the family cookout, over ribs and burgers, talk just naturally turns to the election around the corner. A lot of people vote for friends, family, or whoever put up the most signs and shook the most hands. In the superintendent election, I hope you won’t do that. The superintendent of schools could be the most important position being voted on. The results will have a very direct bearing on our children’s futures.
That’s why I have tried to make this election about the educational issues facing our schools. That’s why week after week I have written an article that addresses one of those issues that gives specific, detailed solutions to problems that must be solved. No other candidate has done that; not now or in the previous five superintendent elections I’ve seen in the 20 years I’ve served the Choctaw County School System. (To give credit where credit is due, however, Donna Nail has addressed issues, albeit with less specific solutions.)
Now I need you to do something. I need feedback. I need to know if you think I am on the right track. I need to know what other educational concerns you have so I can address them this month. To that end I’m asking you to contact me by phone, mail, or email. Write to me at 2385 Weir-Salem Road, Weir, MS 39772. Call me at (662) 285-3633. Email me at churchart@excite.com. I appreciate the calls and emails I’ve received so far, but I need to hear from more citizens who truly care about our schools.
In closing, let me say how much I appreciate the many kind and supportive comments I’ve received during my campaign. One thing I’ve heard over and over is that you wish more people could read my articles, people who don’t have the internet or, like me, are stuck with a dial-up connection that makes it difficult to download what I’ve written. Therefore, I encourage you to talk about these things to people you meet. Better yet, print them out and hand them a copy. Also, if you contact me I’ll be happy to mail anyone a copy of every one of the articles.
Until next time, may God bless you and your children.
Bob Mamrak
I thought all that was excuse enough not to post anything this week, but then I got a phone call from a supporter who was disappointed that I hadn’t written a new article. Well, I wouldn’t want to let anyone down so here I am at the keyboard.
The Fourth of July is traditionally when many Choctaw Countians decide whom they will vote for in August. At the family cookout, over ribs and burgers, talk just naturally turns to the election around the corner. A lot of people vote for friends, family, or whoever put up the most signs and shook the most hands. In the superintendent election, I hope you won’t do that. The superintendent of schools could be the most important position being voted on. The results will have a very direct bearing on our children’s futures.
That’s why I have tried to make this election about the educational issues facing our schools. That’s why week after week I have written an article that addresses one of those issues that gives specific, detailed solutions to problems that must be solved. No other candidate has done that; not now or in the previous five superintendent elections I’ve seen in the 20 years I’ve served the Choctaw County School System. (To give credit where credit is due, however, Donna Nail has addressed issues, albeit with less specific solutions.)
Now I need you to do something. I need feedback. I need to know if you think I am on the right track. I need to know what other educational concerns you have so I can address them this month. To that end I’m asking you to contact me by phone, mail, or email. Write to me at 2385 Weir-Salem Road, Weir, MS 39772. Call me at (662) 285-3633. Email me at churchart@excite.com. I appreciate the calls and emails I’ve received so far, but I need to hear from more citizens who truly care about our schools.
In closing, let me say how much I appreciate the many kind and supportive comments I’ve received during my campaign. One thing I’ve heard over and over is that you wish more people could read my articles, people who don’t have the internet or, like me, are stuck with a dial-up connection that makes it difficult to download what I’ve written. Therefore, I encourage you to talk about these things to people you meet. Better yet, print them out and hand them a copy. Also, if you contact me I’ll be happy to mail anyone a copy of every one of the articles.
Until next time, may God bless you and your children.
Bob Mamrak
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